Running slower will not make you a slower runner.

Why do runners find it so hard to slow down their runs and run “at an easy effort?” Is there a running myth that running slowly will make you a “slow runner?” Is it because we have constantly or continue to be shouted at to run faster/keep up/if you stopped talking you could run faster. Or are apps like Strava creating obsessive behaviours that are having an impact on how we train?

I wanted to explore the barriers and the reasons why some runners find it so hard being able to run easy, it was having an impact on me when I looked at Strava data seeing training session after training session being run at a pace that was too fast for the goal that had been discussed between runner and coach. I had to dig deep about why I kept repeating “slow your runs down”. Did I not want my runners to improve, was my coaching ethos preventing them from progressing?

Running hard

I also understand the need to push oneself to the limit, to feel as though there is improvement in each run. I too love the feeling of running hard, the endorphin high, even the feeling of nausea as I push myself to the finish line. I also get that when you come to running later in life having previously thought that you weren’t sporty, that you want to cram in as many pbs as there’s only so much running time left. And coming to running later in life brings added baggage of work and family commitments which can leave many people time poor…so every run must count!

STOP

Listening to bad advice about running hard all the time!

I am in no doubt that running hard is a great way to improve performance but there’s a balance to be had between hard workouts with easy effort runs to avoid overtraining and injury. Following a training plan that has been designed specifically for you will match where you are right now, your coach will know what training phase you are in and construct a training plan to support you. Joe Blogs telling you that you’re not running fast enough might not know your lifestyle, past injuries, or what training phase you are in.

If you consistently run hard without giving your body adequate time to recover, you may be at risk for a variety of overuse injuries such as stress fractures, tendonitis, and muscle strains.

Smart Watches

With all this in mind, I’m going to throw in the mix a tracking app, like Strava which incorporates social network features that promotes runners’ reciprocation by “gamifying” the process. Each run when uploaded encourages rewards; just think about the word kudos (meaning praise and honor) and let’s be honest who doesn’t want praise and honor every time they run! And if you feel that you’ve never been any good at anything before, suddenly you are the “local legend”; this is the stuff of medieval myths, this can boost your ego for running up and down the same path day in day out! When you break it down you can see how “addictive” this reward system can be. The pressure to smash out every run to promote how “good” a runner you are may result to only posting positive running data which could lead to an irrational perception of running and a subsequent burnout.

Putting it into Perspective

I’d like to put it into perspective and take a step back from apps that have been specifically designed to keep us engaged, they only give half the story of how a run went. I’m not having a dig at these apps; I think they are a brilliant resource to record data and to help keep people motivated. But when we start to make the transition from a recreational runner to an athlete who now has a time goal in mind, the training plan is usually written based on science and a sprinkling of art. Learning to listen to your body, your coach and take outside variables like work and family into consideration is a skill that takes time, practice, and patience to achieve. It requires a significant amount of dedication and discipline to maintain a consistent training schedule and a shift in mindset looking at the bigger picture and not how many crowns, local legends and kudos’s have been received at the cost of your mental and physical health.

Own it, run at your easy effort because easy effort will be different for everyone, this zone changes depending on what’s going on in your life. Staying in your true easy zone on easy runs is essential as a runner so you can continue to improve your running performance, easy runs should be easy and hard runs should be hard, every training session on a plan is part of the overall bigger jigsaw, all the pieces should fit if you follow the plan.